No Jaguars but there were ants...

Okay, so yesterday, we decided to take the (upside down) Green Jeep to Cockscomb Basin Wildlife Sanctuary (CBWS) on the outskirts of Placencia, Belize. This sanctuary is internationally recognised as the world’s first jaguar preserve and is also has spectacular waterfalls, views of the Maya Mountains, nature trails and a rich diversity of tropical birds.

We didn’t see any jaguars on this particular visit as they are quite shy creatures and you more likely to spot them at dawn or dusk. There are also tapir, deer and howler monkeys there. We heard the monkeys but didn’t see them.

My husband did a silly Richard Attenborough type video of a whole bunch of ants transporting leaves – it was quite cute. Dorky, but cute.

The jaguar (Panthera onca) is a member of the Panthera species native to the Americas and they exist from the South Western United States and Mexico and across much of Central America. They are a “Near Threatened Species” and their numbers are rapidly declining because of poaching and fragmentation of habitat. For this reason, the Jaguar Sanctuary plays an important role in maintaining their numbers. They can roam free without being hunted and they are not confined in cages in zoos – where wild animals do not naturally thrive.

"While international trade in jaguars or their body parts is prohibited, the cat is still frequently killed, particularly in conflicts with ranchers and farmers in South America. Although reduced, its range remains large. Given its historical distribution, the jaguar has featured prominently in the mythology of numerous indigenous American cultures, including those of the Maya and Aztec." (Source: Wikipedia)

The Sanctuary store had some awesome handcrafted Jaguar masks. Next time I go will definitely buy one to pop on our walls at home.

I didn’t realise this but jaguars swim. Not that we saw any swimming. At this sanctuary there is flowing river where tourists can go tubing which we will try another day, along with the swimming jaguars. (If you check out my other posts you will find a video of me taking my cat swimming in the Caribbean - yep I'm crazy - ask my husband - but in a good, mostly harmless way).

We also saw some beautiful butterflies there. We only spent an hour or so in the late afternoon. Would definitely return and spend a day or even stay overnight in one of the cabanas there for only BZ$20 a night. You can camp there and you can even hike the trails in the evenings where you will more likely spot a jaguar, although the staff recommend doing this with a tour guide for your own safety. Not that the jaguars will eat you or anything gross like that but rather you might trip and fall and break a hip.

After moving from Australia where we lived in the Blue Mountains National Park I really notice the difference between the landscape, the quality of the light and the complete difference in the biodiversity of species. The butterflies in particular here in Belize are just spectacular. Not that Australia doesn't have a lot of beautiful species and weird and fierce creatures. The novelty of a new country is so much fun.

On a side note, it would be great if Steemit would fix up their photo bollocks which makes all our pics upload (upside down, sideways or inside out or whichever). Appreciate any good tips on this one Steemians.